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California Gold Rush: A History from Beginning to End
Discover the remarkable history of the California Gold Rush...
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Many of us dream of finding instant wealth. Just imagine if you were able to go to a place where you could simply gather from the ground gold worth many thousands of dollars. Now imagine that at a time when the average wage for an unskilled worker was barely ten dollars per month.
That was the reality in California from 1848 to 1855. In the early days, people were able to find large quantities of gold using little more than picks, shovels, and metal pans. Fortunes were made not just by the gold-seekers themselves but also by those who sold them goods and services. When news of these discoveries reached the rest of America and the wider world in late 1848, a vast influx of hopeful prospectors descended on California, sparking a gold rush.
In 1849, an average of over 1,000 people were arriving in San Francisco every week. With so many people looking for increasingly scarce gold, only a few of these “forty-niners” actually found wealth, and many instead experienced crushing work, disappointment, crime, disease, and death. For the Native Americans who lived in the areas that the prospectors sought to exploit, this influx of white settlers inevitably brought not wealth but death and destitution.
The story of the California Gold Rush is a story of success, failure, boldness, avarice, and the birth of a new American dream.
Discover a plethora of topics such asJohn Sutter and the Gold DiscoveryThe World Comes to CaliforniaThe Forty-NinersCalifornia The Indian ProblemWinners and LosersA New American DreamAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on the California Gold Rush, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!
Free BONUS Inside!
Many of us dream of finding instant wealth. Just imagine if you were able to go to a place where you could simply gather from the ground gold worth many thousands of dollars. Now imagine that at a time when the average wage for an unskilled worker was barely ten dollars per month.
That was the reality in California from 1848 to 1855. In the early days, people were able to find large quantities of gold using little more than picks, shovels, and metal pans. Fortunes were made not just by the gold-seekers themselves but also by those who sold them goods and services. When news of these discoveries reached the rest of America and the wider world in late 1848, a vast influx of hopeful prospectors descended on California, sparking a gold rush.
In 1849, an average of over 1,000 people were arriving in San Francisco every week. With so many people looking for increasingly scarce gold, only a few of these “forty-niners” actually found wealth, and many instead experienced crushing work, disappointment, crime, disease, and death. For the Native Americans who lived in the areas that the prospectors sought to exploit, this influx of white settlers inevitably brought not wealth but death and destitution.
The story of the California Gold Rush is a story of success, failure, boldness, avarice, and the birth of a new American dream.
Discover a plethora of topics such asJohn Sutter and the Gold DiscoveryThe World Comes to CaliforniaThe Forty-NinersCalifornia The Indian ProblemWinners and LosersA New American DreamAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on the California Gold Rush, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!
111 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 28, 2022
65 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
About the author
Hourly History
693 books856 followersAt Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 9, 2022
Good read
Seems like the more I read about American history the more I see how horribly screwed over The Native Americans were.
Seems like the more I read about American history the more I see how horribly screwed over The Native Americans were.
February 16, 2023
Published in 2022 by Hourly History.
The short histories produced by Hourly History are designed to read in about an hour. In some cases the size limit makes for a very incomplete history. In this case, I thought that topic and the size limit matched up pretty well.
This e-book details from the beginning (spoiler alert: John Sutter of Sutter's Mill fame was clearly not a good guy) and details the good as well as the bad of the Gold Rush.
Turns out there was a lot of bad, such as environmental destruction on an unprecedented level (they used mining techniques that were outlawed just a few years later. How obviously bad were they if people who let children into mines said that these techniques are clearly out of bounds?!??)
The white miners also used genocidal techniques to wipe out the local Native American populations, killed Chinese immigrants that came across the Pacific to find gold and, of course, jumped the claims of other white miners and killed them. All of the gold and the lure of the possibility of getting rich quick just brought out the worst in almost everybody.
It also brought poor hygiene and possibly even worse building standards and this led to tragedy. Disease outbreaks were common and when there were earthquakes a lot of people were killed. But...a lot of gold was discovered and a lot of people got rich selling to the other gold seekers.
I thought this was a solid re-telling of the history of the California Gold Rush - warts and all. I rate this short history 5 stars out of 5.
The short histories produced by Hourly History are designed to read in about an hour. In some cases the size limit makes for a very incomplete history. In this case, I thought that topic and the size limit matched up pretty well.
This e-book details from the beginning (spoiler alert: John Sutter of Sutter's Mill fame was clearly not a good guy) and details the good as well as the bad of the Gold Rush.
Turns out there was a lot of bad, such as environmental destruction on an unprecedented level (they used mining techniques that were outlawed just a few years later. How obviously bad were they if people who let children into mines said that these techniques are clearly out of bounds?!??)
The white miners also used genocidal techniques to wipe out the local Native American populations, killed Chinese immigrants that came across the Pacific to find gold and, of course, jumped the claims of other white miners and killed them. All of the gold and the lure of the possibility of getting rich quick just brought out the worst in almost everybody.
It also brought poor hygiene and possibly even worse building standards and this led to tragedy. Disease outbreaks were common and when there were earthquakes a lot of people were killed. But...a lot of gold was discovered and a lot of people got rich selling to the other gold seekers.
I thought this was a solid re-telling of the history of the California Gold Rush - warts and all. I rate this short history 5 stars out of 5.
January 16, 2023
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly…
The growth of America was not pleasant or serene. Prior to 1848, America with clearly divided into two quite separate parts, the Wild West and the more industrialized East. The Gold Rush (circa 1848-1855) affected the positive growth of a nation, but it also devastated the Native Americans.
The infusion of Gold into the U.S. economy definitely bolstered our dollar but it equally devastated the landscape of what became the State of California (31st State of the Union).
Prior to the Gold Rush, it was only the rich aristocracy that governed and controlled our country through their wealth, etc., but thereafter, the American Dream became available to those with abilities and boldness.
This Hourly History fills in the gaps of what we learned about the Gold Rush, the immigrants who came and help form our country, from our high school and/or college history classes. I found it a most informative read.
The growth of America was not pleasant or serene. Prior to 1848, America with clearly divided into two quite separate parts, the Wild West and the more industrialized East. The Gold Rush (circa 1848-1855) affected the positive growth of a nation, but it also devastated the Native Americans.
The infusion of Gold into the U.S. economy definitely bolstered our dollar but it equally devastated the landscape of what became the State of California (31st State of the Union).
Prior to the Gold Rush, it was only the rich aristocracy that governed and controlled our country through their wealth, etc., but thereafter, the American Dream became available to those with abilities and boldness.
This Hourly History fills in the gaps of what we learned about the Gold Rush, the immigrants who came and help form our country, from our high school and/or college history classes. I found it a most informative read.
December 17, 2022
It was very interesting to learn about the history of the California Gold rush and the energy and enthusiasm that attracted people from all over the world. Many who came initially had to face hardships.
It was disturbing to read about the racism during that period and the genocide of the Native Americans in California. This included the slaughter of many who were innocent and harmless.
Many businesses such as Levi Strauss Blue Jeans can be traced back to the gold rush. The city of San Francisco also changed and transformed rapidly due to this.
The book covered all the necessary details concisely and was very interesting and informative.
It was disturbing to read about the racism during that period and the genocide of the Native Americans in California. This included the slaughter of many who were innocent and harmless.
Many businesses such as Levi Strauss Blue Jeans can be traced back to the gold rush. The city of San Francisco also changed and transformed rapidly due to this.
The book covered all the necessary details concisely and was very interesting and informative.
December 2, 2022
A Wealth of History in a Short Read
I knew about the California gold rush and I’ve read numerous fictional books about it, but I never realized the impact it had on the state and on the country. It was most heartbreaking to realize how horribly the Native Americans were treated. I did not know about the land and rivers in California being destroyed in many areas by hydraulic mining. The California gold rush was a boon for some very ambitious entrepreneurs but was the devastation of many others who had hoped to get rich quick.
I knew about the California gold rush and I’ve read numerous fictional books about it, but I never realized the impact it had on the state and on the country. It was most heartbreaking to realize how horribly the Native Americans were treated. I did not know about the land and rivers in California being destroyed in many areas by hydraulic mining. The California gold rush was a boon for some very ambitious entrepreneurs but was the devastation of many others who had hoped to get rich quick.
December 31, 2022
Food for Thought
Very fun to learn about this important event in the history of the West . The positive things this wealth provided to our nations treasury . Which spurred the Industrial Revolution . Going from an agricultural society mainly. But creating great wealth for some individuals. The displacing. Enslavement in the gold mines. With eventual destruction and relocation of the Native Americans was a horrible history of our early nation.
Very fun to learn about this important event in the history of the West . The positive things this wealth provided to our nations treasury . Which spurred the Industrial Revolution . Going from an agricultural society mainly. But creating great wealth for some individuals. The displacing. Enslavement in the gold mines. With eventual destruction and relocation of the Native Americans was a horrible history of our early nation.
March 17, 2024
If you want a quick summary of the California Gold Rush, look no further. The element I liked best was that the extermination of the Native Americans was covered, unlike what seems to be the Standard Text: The Age of Gold, which suggests the Native tribes were able to earn a living, or were left alone. They weren't. They were enslaved or massacred.
December 5, 2023
California Gold Rush
Great book short and to the point, I remember reading about the Forty niners in Middle school. Mr. Sutter was the who found the gold flakes which started the California Gold Rush. I would recommend this book for others to read!
Great book short and to the point, I remember reading about the Forty niners in Middle school. Mr. Sutter was the who found the gold flakes which started the California Gold Rush. I would recommend this book for others to read!
August 12, 2024
Greater understanding of the expansion of the US
The 1849 rush of people to San Francisco changed the entire country not just San Francisco. This book explains what really happened and how much of an effect it had in occupying the west.
The 1849 rush of people to San Francisco changed the entire country not just San Francisco. This book explains what really happened and how much of an effect it had in occupying the west.
December 18, 2022
Well written.
January 14, 2023
Pretty golden
Short fast read that glosses over some truths . Take the California state capital for example, actually in a few places before Sacramento!
Short fast read that glosses over some truths . Take the California state capital for example, actually in a few places before Sacramento!
April 19, 2023
Interesting, but Not Enlightening
Good overview of the gold rush and its impact on California and the entire country. Easy reading and clear presentation.
Good overview of the gold rush and its impact on California and the entire country. Easy reading and clear presentation.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews